Horseback riding is a popular recreational activity and sport. One of the most difficult aspects of horseback riding is maintaining the proper position of the fingers when gripping the reins. Correct position of the fingers about the reins is important to maintain effective control and communication over a horse. Having the proper finger position about the reins will also aid the rider in also keeping their hands in the correct position.
Furthermore, in training for the sport of competitive horseback riding, a rider trains for many hours to learn to guide a horse through a series of complex maneuvers by slight movements of the rider's body and hands. Judges of competitive horseback riding award points to the rider for the precise movements of the body and hands. To develop the proper riding techniques and achieve higher scores in competition, the rider must learn the proper position of the fingers about the reins.
In almost every instance of recreational and competitive horseback riding, the rider wears gloves to protect their hands when gripping the reins. The conventional horseback riding glove has a thick outer layer for protection and wear resistance, and a softer inner layer that provides a better feel against the rider's hands.
One drawback of traditional horseback riding gloves is the difficulty for the rider to feel that their fingers are in the proper position when riding, especially for new or inexperienced riders. For example, new or inexperienced riders tend to open or rotate their fingers about the reins. When the fingers are open and loose, the rider will have poor control of the horse. Furthermore, when the fingers are out of position, the rider's hands and wrists will invariable not be in the proper position.
Attempts have been made to teach the correct position of the rider's fingers about the reins, but have drawbacks. For example, a horseback riding training glove is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,946,721 and includes a glove having visual indicators on the glove to quickly relay information to an instructor about whether the rider's hands are in the proper position. However, the training glove does not include any means for a physical attachment of the glove to itself.
Another horseback riding training system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,591,590 and includes a training rein system in which a pair of gloves is worn by the rider with each glove having a mechanical fastener so that when the rider grasps the reins while wearing the gloves, the gloves and thus the rider's hands, are mechanically fastened to the reins. This invention only teaches how to keep the rider's hand secured to the reins. The invention does not teach how the correct finger position about reins.
Another type of horseback riding glove includes a traditional horseback riding glove, where the entire front surface is covered with a tacky substance to achieve a better contact with the reins. However, the tacky horseback riding glove does not teach a rider the correct position of the fingers about the reins, or provide any indication that the rider's finger position is correct.
Conventional horseback riding training gloves are thus ill-suited for physically keeping the rider's fingers in the proper position about the reins while allowing the rider to easily disengage for safety.